Two people were convicted on Friday of operating a maternity hotel in Rancho Cucamonga, which rented housing units and provided other services to pregnant women from China to give birth in Southern California in an industry known as “birth tourism”.
Rancho Cucamonga residents Michael Wei Yueh Liu and Jing Dong were found guilty of one count of conspiracy and 10 counts of international money laundering, according to authorities.
The operation
The maternity hotel operated by Liu and Jing was in business for at least between 2012 and 2015, according to authorities. Besides providing housing, the two offered guidance to their clients — including tips on how to:
- Obtain visas to stay in the U.S.
- Get legal documents like birth certificates for their newborns
- Talk to customs officials to evade suspicion.
- Choose entry points to the U.S. “with perceived less customs scrutiny, such as Hawaii.”
Liu and Dong received money from overseas and used that money to promote their scheme.
Authorities said the pair charged tens of thousands of dollars for those services.